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Better gaming for every taste and every body

There are more than 2 billion gamers around the world, a diverse bunch of people united by their love of e-sports and gaming ¬– and by being an overlooked group from a life-at-home perspective. But UPPKOPPLA collection is about to change that.

Area Academy is world leading in building educational structures for e-sports. Their gaming expertise in combination with the IKEA home furnishing knowledge add up to UPPKOPPLA, a collection of furniture and accessories tailor-made for gaming in terms of ergonomics, function, and design.

“This gives us a chance to make everyday life easier for a very large group of people, and to give them more options design-wise”, says Michael Nikolic, Creative Leader IKEA.

Because although the common notion of a gamer still is that of a teenager living with his parents, the average gamer anno 2019 is in fact 35 years old. Being 2 billion people, it goes without saying that there will be lots of different needs and tastes to take into consideration.

”It’s actually striking how unexplored this part of the gaming industry is. Focus has always been on the hardware, and everything else has been ignored”, says Tommy Ingemarsson, founder and CEO Area Academy (and the iconic founder of renowned professional e-sports brand Ninjas in Pyjamas).

A group of people gathered around a man working on a computer, looking at his screen.
Tommy Ingemarsson testing out some of the prototypes.

For UPPKOPPLA collection, IKEA and Area Academy will introduce furniture and solutions specially made for gaming – chairs and desks that can be adjusted to fit different bodies, needs and tastes, clever ways to get rid of tangled cords, and more. The aim is to reach the young, the old, and everyone in-between, the professional players and the twice-a-week gamers, those with plenty of space and those who live in 15 square metres, those who are interested in interior design and those who are not…

For accessories the two partners are joined by another, the cutting-edge medical wearables company UNYQ, that contributes with their expertise in 3D printing and photogrammetry.

“UNYQ thinks outside the gaming box which is great”, says Tommy, who together with his colleagues at Area Academy has given his professional feedback on the first three 3D printed prototypes – a biometric wrist brace, custom key caps, and a mouse bungee.

“Collaborating with IKEA is a dream coming true”, continues Tommy.

“It’s something I’ve thought about since I first started gaming. I’ve always been sitting on crappy chairs at kitchen tables. It’s simply been super difficult to get hold of good furniture.”

Two men engaged in a meeting at a wooden table, with another man in the background.

Two men in an office setting with beige walls.

Designer David Wahl being handed an object.

IKEA designer, David Wahl.

A group of people gathered around a man working on a computer at a desk.

  • About the UPPKOPPLA collection
  • UPPKOPPLA collection is the result of a close collaboration between IKEA and Area Academy. The overall aim is to make everyday lives of gamers more comfortable, easy – and great looking.
  • Consists of chairs, desks, accessories, plus more, all aimed at creating an easier life for gamers – and to give more choices design-wise
  • The third key player in UPPKOPPLA is UNYQ, cutting edge medical wearables company and experts in 3D printing and photogrammetry. The first three customizable 3D printed prototypes – a biometric wrist brace, custom key pads, and a mouse bungee – are all designed to fit every taste and every body, despite being mass-produced.
  • The launch of the complete collection is planned for 2021
  • Designers:
    Jóna Berglind Stefánsdóttir, Monika Mulder, David Wahl, Friso Wiersma, Peter Wildfeuer

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